WHO Reports Record Virus Cases As Trump Mulls In-Person G7

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The World Health Organization (WHO) has reported the largest single-day increase in coronavirus cases, as US President Donald Trump proposed hosting world leaders for the annual G7 summit as a sign of “normalization.”

The WHO said Wednesday that more than 106,000 virus cases had been reported — the most in a single day since the outbreak erupted in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December.

The UN body’s chief, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said he was “very concerned” about the situation in low- and middle-income nations.

Latin America has seen infections surge in recent days and, in some cases, countries have reinstated lockdown measures that had been eased.

Brazil has been hardest hit, logging the third-highest number of cases in the world. Peru, Mexico and Chile have also seen steady increases in infections.

Health officials in Brazil reported 1,179 new coronavirus deaths in a single day, although far-right President Jair Bolsonaro remains bitterly opposed to lockdowns, having described them as unnecessary over a “little flu.”